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Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary

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MICAH, Book of

Sixth in the order of the books of the 12 minor prophets.

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• Author

• Date

• Audience

• Background

• Purpose and Message

• Content

Author

Micah 1:1 says that the word of the Lord came to Micah of Moresheth. Micah was God’s spokesman to the people of his day. Micah is not called a prophet in his book. There is no account of God’s call for him to be a prophet, but he does claim to be God’s witness (v 2). Five times in the book some form of the messenger formula, “thus says the Lord,” is used (2:3; 3:5; 4:6; 6:1, 9), asserting that the message is from God. Micah, like a true prophet, claims, “As for me, I am filled with power and the Spirit of the Lord. I am filled with justice and might, fearlessly pointing out Israel’s sin and rebellion” (3:8, NLT).

Micah’s name was common in ancient Israel. At least seven different individuals in the OT are called Micah or Michaiah. The prophet is mentioned by name only in Micah 1:1 and Jeremiah 26:18 in the OT.

The superscription of Micah (Mi 1:1) gives his hometown as Moresheth, which may be identified with the modern village of Tell el Judeideh about 25 miles (40.2 kilometers) southwest of Jerusalem on the road from Azekah to Lachish. Moresheth, in Micah’s time, was a frontier village near the Philistine border city of Gath. As a border town, Moresheth often took the brunt of enemy attacks on Judah from the south and west (1:15). Such an attack may be reflected in verses 10-16, where 12 towns in southwest Judah are named as being in the path of an invader. Moresheth-gath is ninth in that list. Because Micah lived in this border town, he seems to have developed an international concern with “the peoples” (1:2; 4:1-5, 11; 5:7-15; 7:16-17). As a citizen of a small town, Micah could identify with peasants and small land holders who were often victims of foreign aggressors and of the politicians and greedy land grabbers in Jerusalem (2:1-4). Although Micah may have left Moresheth to live and preach in Jerusalem, he had harsh words for cities (1:5-6; 3:12; 4:10; 5:11, 14; 6:9).

Date

The date for Micah’s ministry was sometime during the reigns of three kings of Judah: Jotham (c. 750–735 BC), Ahaz (c. 735–715 BC), and Hezekiah (c. 715–686 BC). The maximum period covered by the reigns of these three kings was over 60 years (750–686 BC), but it is not likely that Micah was active as a prophet during all of that time. Jeremiah dates Micah’s ministry in the reign of Hezekiah (Jer 26:18). Some of Micah’s oracles seem to predate the fall of Samaria (Mi 1:2-7; 6:16), an event that took place in 722 BC. The Assyrians appear to be Israel’s primary enemy in Micah’s time (5:5-6), a situation that prevailed during the reigns of the three kings listed above. Some striking parallel passages between Micah and Isaiah (Mi 4:1-4; Is 2:2-4) and between Micah and Amos (Mi 6:10-11; Am 8:5-6) make it probable that Micah’s ministry was in the last part of the eighth century BC.

Audience

Micah’s message was universal. It was addressed first in a broad sense to “all the people of the world” (Mi 1:2), but the focus narrows quickly to the capital cities of Jerusalem and Samaria (1:1). Other cities in Judah are the object of one oracle (1:10-16). A group of wealthy land grabbers (2:1), false prophets (2:6-11; 3:5-7), judges, prophets, priests, and dishonest merchants (3:1, 11; 6:10-12) are the objects of other messages.

Background

In order to understand the book of Micah properly, one needs a knowledge of the Assyrian crisis in the history of ancient Israel. During the early part of the eighth century BC, the northern and southern kingdoms of Israel and Judah experienced a period of peace and prosperity under the long and stable reigns of Jeroboam II (793–753 BC) and Uzziah (792–740 BC). Radical changes in the economic structure occurred within Israel and Judah during this long period. There was a rise of cities and a new wealthy class. Commerce grew enormously. The rich got richer and abused their power over the poor, the priests, and the judges. A class system appeared that struck at the heart of OT covenant religion.

During the reigns of Jeroboam II and Uzziah, Israel and Judah were relatively free from outside intervention. But in 745 BC Tiglath-pileser III became king of Assyria and set out to create an empire. He captured Damascus in 732 BC and made vassals of the small states of Israel, Judah, and Philistia. Tiglath-pileser III died in 727 BC and was succeeded by Shalmaneser V. In 724 BC Hoshea, the last king of Israel, withheld tribute from Assyria and incurred the wrath of the Assyrians. Shalmaneser V began his siege of Samaria in 724 BC, but the people were not subdued until 722 BC. By that time, Sargon II was the king of Assyria. Many of the wealthy and influential people of Samaria were carried into captivity to Assyria (2 Kgs 15:29-30; 17:1-41). Judah did not escape the crisis. Although a fragmentary government of Judean kings was left in Jerusalem by the Assyrians, practically all of their liberties were taken away (2 Kgs 16:10). Judah never fully recovered politically nor religiously from the Assyrian crisis.

Purpose and Message

The book of Micah is made up of about 20 separate sections or oracles. There is a variety of material in the book about different subjects, coming perhaps from different periods. With such variety in the book, it is difficult to speak of the message of the book. However, certain themes are prominent in the book, the most prominent being judgment. It is coming on Samaria (Mi 1:2-6) and on Jerusalem (3:9-12). It is coming on guilty land grabbers (2:3-5), on false prophets, corrupt judges, and hireling priests (3:5-12). Judgment is coming on the cheater, the violent, the liar, and the deceiver (6:9-12). Judgment is coming on the nations (4:11-13; 5:5-9, 15; 7:16-17). Judgment is due to sin (1:5). Sin takes many forms in Micah, ranging from idolatry (1:7; 5:13), to practicing the occult (5:12), to theft (6:11), to lying (6:12), to contempt for parents (7:6), to murder (7:2).

What is Micah’s remedy for sin? For the nations it is a knowledge of and obedience to the ways of God (4:2). For Israel it is “to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God” (6:8). All of this is possible because God pardons iniquity and is not always angry. He is a God of compassion who treads iniquities underfoot, casts sins into the depth of the sea, and keeps his covenant with Abraham (7:18-20). Micah caught a glimpse of the future kingdom of God when he saw that a future ruler of Israel would be born in Bethlehem. He will stand and feed his flock in the strength of the Lord. He will provide security because he will be great to the ends of the earth (5:2-4).

Content

Some scholars divide the book into two parts. The first part (chs 1–5) is addressed primarily to the nations, while the second (chs 6–7) is addressed primarily to Israel. The first part ends with a threat of judgment on the nations (5:15) and the second ends with a hymn to the compassion of God. That outline seems too simple, however, and does not cover the diverse materials in the two parts. Other scholars divide the book into three parts: chapters 1–3 (judgment); chapters 4–5 (hope); and chapters 6–7 (judgment and hope). Again, this outline is too simple because all three sections contain both judgment and hope. Perhaps it is better to divide the book into three parts beginning with chapters 1, 3, and 6. Each section begins with words of judgment (1:2–2:11; 3:1-12; 6:1–7:6) and ends on a note of hope (2:12-13; 4:1–5:15; 7:7-20). Such an outline can be valuable in attempting to see the book as a whole, but a closer look at each oracle or unit is needed to interpret the book properly. This discussion marks off each of the 20 units by chapter and verse, identifies its literary form, and determines its major motif or theme.

The first unit, “The Lord Is Coming,” consists of 1:2-7. Its form is that of a lawsuit and a theophany. The peoples of the world are called to listen to what the Lord will witness against them. He is described as leaving his heavenly temple to come to earth to tread on top of the mountains that melt under him (1:2-4). God’s coming is due to the sins of the people. Samaria, the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel, is to be destroyed primarily because of idolatry (vv 5-7).

The second passage is “The Prophet’s Lament” (1:8-16). The prophet sees an enemy army coming from the southwest. Twelve cities are in its path. Desolation, refugees, and hostages are the result. There is a wordplay on the name of each of the cities except Gath, designed to express the fate of each city. Some of the cities are well known, such as Lachish, Jerusalem, Moresheth-gath, and Adullam. Others cannot be identified. This passage indicates that even though the first oracle was addressed to the nations and specifically announced the fall of Samaria, Judah was the real concern of Micah.

The third passage is “Woe to the Wealthy Wicked” (2:1-5). It is a woe oracle, meaning that it is a message of judgment. This time, judgment is on a certain group of wealthy men who wickedly devise schemes at night to seize houses and lands from unsuspecting farmers. Micah says their plans will boomerang. Their own lands will be snatched from them.

“Micah and the Wealthy Wicked” is the theme of the fourth section (2:6-11). This passage records a dispute between Micah and those who snatched houses and fields from unsuspecting victims. Micah’s wicked listeners could not accept his message of judgment. They found it offensive and commanded him to stop preaching such things. They did not believe that evil would overtake them because they thought God would not do such things (vv 6-7). But Micah enumerates a number of crimes of these wicked men, such as taking the robes off travelers’ backs and driving women and children from their homes (vv 8-9). Such wicked men follow false prophets (v 11).

The fifth passage is “A Remnant to Be Restored” (2:12-13). The Lord will gather a remnant of his people like sheep in a fold (v 12), then the Lord as their king will lead them out through the gate ahead of them (v 13). This section is open to various interpretations. The passage does not indicate the place where the Lord will gather the remnant. Some assume the place is Babylon and take the passage as a reference to the exile. Others believe the place is Jerusalem and relate the incident to refugees fleeing to Jerusalem before Sennacherib’s invasion in 701 BC.

The sixth passage is about “Guilty Rulers” (3:1-4). Micah charges that the heads and leaders of his people act like cannibals. They should know justice but they hate the good and love evil. They will cry to the Lord, but he will not hear them.

“Peace Prophets and Micah” is another disputation passage (3:5-8). Micah accuses the false prophets of preaching for money and asserts that they have no vision or message from God. By contrast, Micah claims to speak in the power and Spirit of God.

“Corrupt Leaders and Zion’s Fall” is the subject of the eighth passage (3:9-12). This oracle seems to be a summary of all Micah has been saying to the various groups of leaders in Jerusalem. Because of their sins and crimes, Jerusalem and the temple will be destroyed.

“Zion’s Future Exaltation,” the ninth section, contains the surprising announcement of Zion’s fall and the temple’s destruction (4:1-5). This oracle of salvation was probably deliberately placed after the previous oracle of judgment to indicate that even though the temple might be destroyed, it would be restored in grander style to be the worship center for all nations. A parallel to this passage is found in Isaiah 2:1-4.

“Restoration of a Remnant and Zion” is the subject of the tenth section (4:6-8). The opening phrase, “in that coming day,” indicates that this is an eschatological oracle in that the Lord is seen as reigning over his restored flock in Zion.

The next three passages (4:9-10; 4:11-13; 5:1-4) all begin with the word “now” (in the Hebrew) and end with an assertion that the present evil situation will be changed for the better. The first of the three is “From Distress to Deliverance” (4:9-10); the second is “From Siege to Victory” (vv 11-13); and the third is “From Helpless Judge to Ideal King” (5:1-4). The last passage in this series is one of the most familiar passages in Micah. It contains the promise of the birth of a new king in Bethlehem who will be great to the ends of the earth.

The fourteenth section, “Peace and the Overthrow of Assyria” (5:5-6), is followed closely by “The Remnant among the Peoples” (vv 7-9). The remnant is portrayed as dew on plants and as a lion among sheep. Dew on plants is usually taken to signify a blessing, but in 2 Samuel 17:12 it is a metaphor for judgment as a lion is among sheep.

The sixteenth passage is “Purge of the Military and False Religions” (5:10-15). The expressions “cut off,” “throw down,” “cause to perish,” “root out,” and “destroy” suggest radical surgery. It is an oracle on those things that might take the place of God in people’s minds.

“God’s Lawsuit” (6:1-8) is probably the most familiar passage in Micah. It is one of the great summaries of true religion.

The next passage presents “More Charges and the Sentence” (6:9-16). The further charges are dishonest business practices, lying, and acts of violence. The sentence is a life of futility, frustration, scorn, and destruction.

The nineteenth pericope in Micah is a “Lament over a Decadent Society” (7:1-6). The prophet begins with a woe because he seems to be the only godly or righteous man left (vv 1-2). He cannot trust anyone. Everyone may be setting a trap for another. People do evil with both hands. Even the members of families rise against each other. Jesus applied the words of 7:6 to his own times (Mt 10:21, 35-36).

The last section of Micah (Mi 7:7-20) is a prophetic liturgy. It is made up of a psalm of trust (vv 7-10); a prophetic promise of restoration (vv 11-13); a prayer for God to bless Israel and judge their enemies (vv 14-17); and a hymn or a doxology declaring God incomparable in “grace and truth,” showing faithfulness to Jacob and steadfast love to Abraham (v 20).